Earth working tool and carriage of an underground cable laying machine



March 1962 A. HARRES 3,024,851

EARTH WORKING TOOL AND CARRIAGE OF AN UNDERGROUND CABLE LAYING MACHINE Filed Jan. 28, 1960 2 h et 1 I I '32) I l I I N VEN TOR.

ATTORNEYS March 13, 1962 A. HARRES 3,024,851

EARTH WORKING TOOL AND CARRIAGE OF AN UNDERGROUND CABLE LAYING MACHINE Filed Jan. 28, 1960 2 eet 2 INN l N VEN TOR.

ATTEI RN EYS United States Patent Ofitice 3,024,851 Patented Mar. 13, 1962 3,024,851 EARTH WORKING TOOL AND CARRIAGE OF AN UNDERGROUND CABLE LAYING MACHINE Alfred Harres, Box 25, Worland, Wyo. Filed Jan. 28, 1960, Ser. No. 5,237 Claims. (Cl. 172699) This invention relates to machine for opening the ground and planting or installing telephone or other electrical cables, plastic water lines and the like, and in particular an attachment for a tractor including an arcuate track pivotally mounted by arms on the sides of a tractor and elevated and lowered by hydraulic cylinders, and a floating tooth or shoe carried by a carriage rotatably mounted on the track and free to follow the center of a tractor around curves and up and down hills, and the like.

The purpose of this invention is to provide a cable lying machine in which the cable planting element is free to travel laterally on an arcuate track and in which a cable may be threaded through the element without cutting the cable and thereby obviating the necessity of splicing a cable threaded through the machine.

Various types of cable laying machines and attachments have been provided and although such devices make it possible to lay cables the cable laying shoe is rigidly mounted on the center of the machine making it necessary to hold the tractor or other machine on a true course and thereby eliminating the freedom of movement resulting from a floating shoe. With this thought in mind, this invention contemplates a cable laying shoe suspended from a carriage rotatably mounted on an arcuate track supported by arms pivotally mounted on the sides of a tractor, and wherein the shoe is free to swing laterally to compensate for lateral movements of a towing tractor.

The object of this invention is to provide means for mounting a cable laying shoe on a tractor wherein the shoe is floating.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cable laying attachment for a tractor in which a cable is threaded through the attachment without cutting the cable.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cable laying attachment for a tractor in which the cable is planted in the ground by a floating shoe in which the attachment is of a relatively simple and economical construction.

With these and other objects and advantages in view the invention embodies a vertically disposed shoe mounted on a carriage free to rotate on an arcuate track and arms extended from ends of the track for pivotally mounting the track, carriage, and shoe on a tractor.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view showing the improved cable laying attachment mounted on a tractor, the forward portion of the tractor being broken away.

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the attachment shown in FIGURE 1 also showing the attachment pivotally mounted on a tractor.

FIGURE 3 is a rear elevational view of the cable laying attachment showing the shoe or tooth mounted on a carriage on a box-like track of the attachment.

FIGURE 4 is a cross-section through the track taken on line 4--4 of FIGURE 3 illustrating the mounting of the shoe on the track by the carriage.

FIGURE 5 is a cross-section through the track showing upper and lower plates thereof with parts broken away and other parts omitted.

FIGURE 6 is a cross-section through the track, with the parts shown on an enlarged scale illustrating the relative positions of the rollers and also showing the soil opening shoe with a loop through which a cable is threaded in the position of feeding a cable into a trench opened by the shoe.

FIGURE 7 is a cross-section through a carriage that travels over the tracks with the track and other parts omitted.

FIGURE 8 is a plan view of the carriage showing the V-shaped shank of the shoe and also showing the cable retaining arm positioned to follow the shoe.

Referring now to the drawing wherein like reference characters denote corresponding parts the improved cable laying machine of this invention includes a box-like track 10, including an upper plate 11 having an arcuate concave leading edge 13 and an arcuate convex trailing edge 12, a lower plate 14 having an arcuate leading concave edge 16, and a trailing convex edge 15, arms 17 extended from ends of the track and pivotally mounted by pins 18 on sides of a tractor 19, an arcuate vertically disposed plate '21 extended between and connecting leading edges of the plates 11 and 14, a similar plate 20 connecting trailing edges of the plates 11 and 14, and a carriage 22 mounted to travel on the edges of the upper and lower plates, 21 tooth or shoe 23 carried by a V-shaped shank 24, on the carriage and hydraulic cylinders 25 and 26 pivotally mounted by bearings 27 and 28 on the upper surface of the upper plate 11, and having piston rods 29 and 30, extended ends of which are pivotally mounted by pins 31 and 32 in the upper ends of supports 33 and 34. The supports 33 and 34 are mounted on bars 35 and 36 which are secured to the sides of the tractor by bolts 37.

The carriage 22 includes an upper plate 38 and a lower plate 39, the plate 38 being positioned to travel over the upper plate 11 of the track and the lower plate 39 being positioned to travel below the lower plate 14 of the track. The carriage is provided with upper rollers 40 and 41 at the rear and 42 and 43 at the front, and lower rollers 44 and 45 at the rear and 46 and 47 at the front.

The rollers 40 and 41 at the upper part of the rear of the carriage are rotat-ably mounted by pins 48 in tangs 49 and 50, struck from the plate 38; and the rollers 44 and 45 are pivotally mounted by pins 51 in ends 52 and 53 struck from the lower plate 39. The rollers 42 and 43 at the front of the upper part of the carriage are rotatably mounted by pins 54 in tangs 55 and 56, struck from the plate 38, and the vertically disposed roller 46 and 47 at the lower edge of the front of the carriage are pivotally mouned by pins 57, the lower ends of which are rotatably mounted in the plate 39 and the upper ends of which are retained in a bar 58 mounted on the plate 39 The trailing edges of the plates 38 and 39 of the carriage are provided with the recesses 59 in which the V-shaped shank 24 of the shoe 23 is positioned. The trailing edges of the plates 38 and 39, at the open ends of the recesses 59 are provided with projections 60 and 61 which secure the V-shaped shank 24 in the recesses. The shank 24 is provided with spaced openings 62 by which the shoe 23 is adjustably supported, the openings 62 being positioned in registering relation with openings 63 in brackets 64 on the upper plate 38, whereby the shank and shoe are supported in adjusted positions by a bolt 65 extended through the brackets and shank of the shoe.

The cylinders 25 and 26, which are pivotally mounted by pins 66 and 67 in the bearings 27 and 28 are provided with supply and return connections 68 and 69 which extend from a valve assembly 70, actuated by a hand lever 71 whereby fluid of a compressed air or hydraulic system of a tractor upon which the cable laying attachment is mounted is supplied to the cylinders for raising and lowering the track and shoe.

The attachment is actuated by an operator of the tractor and a cable is trained through an opening 5 of an arm 6 whereby with the shoe opening a trench or passage through the ground the cable is fed into the opening and with the soil dropping in behind the shoe or shank the cable is covered.

This attachment, and particularly the floating mounting of the tooth socket or shoe may be used for agricultural operations and also for construction and the machine may be provided with a rock ripper or ditcher instead of the cable tooth or shoe.

It will also be understood that different types of tools, particularly in the agricultural field may be mounted with a floating draw bar or shoe.

The attachment is illustrated as being mounted on a conventional tractor and it will be understood that the attachment may be mounted on other towing machines or devices.

It will also be understood that modifications, within the scope of the appended claims, may be made in the design and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An attachment for a tractor comprising an arcuate track having arms extended from ends thereof, means for pivotally mounting the arms on said tractor, hydraulic cylinders mounted on the arms and connected to said tractor for raising and lowering the arcuate track and arms, a carriage, rollers mounted on said carriage and positioned to travel on the corners of the arcuate track, said carriage comprising an upper plate and a lower plate, each of said plates having tangs positioned adjacent each corner thereof, the tangs of said upper plate being in vertical alignment with the tangs of said lower plate, vertically aligned pins mounted in said tangs for mounting said rollers thereon, and a V-shaped shank mounted on the carriage and positioned to travel on the track with the carriage.

2. An attachment for use with a tractor comprising a transversely disposed arcuate track, arms extended from ,ends of the track, means for pivotally mounting extended ends of the arms to said tractor, supports mounted on said tractor, hydraulic cylinders mounted on the arms of the arcuate track and having piston rods connected to said supports, a carriage, rollers mounted on the carriage and positioned for travel on the corners of said arcuate track, said carriage comprising an upper plate and a lower plate, each of said plates having tangs positioned adjacent each corner thereof, the tangs of said upper plate being in vertical alignment with the tangs of said lower plate, vertically aligned pins mounted in said tangs for mounting said rollers thereon, a vertically disposed shank, V-shaped in cross-section, and having a soil opening shoe on the lower end carried by the carriage, and means for supplying fluid under pressure to said cylinders.

3. A cable laying attachment for use with a tractor comprising a transversely disposed arcuate track, substantially rectangular shape in cross-section, arms extended from ends of the track, means for pivotally mounting ends of the arms on the sides of said tractor, a carriage having rollers thereon positioned on the track, means for mounting the rollers on the carriage whereby the rollers travel on the corners of the track, a shank, V-shaped in cross-section adjustably mounted on the carriage, and a soil opening shoe carried by the lower end of the shank.

4. In a soil opening attachment for use with a tractor, the combination which comprises an arcuate track, rectangular shaped in cross-section having upper and lower plates connected by vertically disposed members, a carriage extended around said track, rollers mounted on the carriage and positioned to travel on the corners of the plates of the track, a vertically disposed shank, V- shaped in cross-section, mounted on the carriage, a soil opening shoe on the lower end of the shank, supports mounted on said tractor and hydraulic cylinders pivotally mounted on ends of the track and having piston rods pivotally connected to said supports.

5. In a cable laying attachment for mounting on a tractor, the combination which comprises a transversely disposed arcuate track, arms extended from ends of the track, means for pivotally mounting extended ends of the arms to said tractor, hydraulic cylinders pivotally mounted on ends of the track, means for connecting piston rods of the cylinders to said tractor, a carriage having an upper plate and a lower plate, tangs on each of said plates adjacent the corners thereof, said tangs being in vertical alignment with each other, vertically aligned pins carried by said tangs, rollers mounted for rotation on said pins, said rollers being positioned to travel on the corners of said track, and a soil opening shoe adjustably mounted on the carriage.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 867,270 Himble Oct. 1, 1907 1,326,551 Turnbull Dec. 30, 1919 2,333,837 Wibbels Nov. 9, 1943 2,414,248 Townsend Jan. 14, 1947 2,638,832 Kinsinger May 19, 1953 2,826,131 Willet Mar. 11, 1958 

